Hurricane Milton intensified on its way towards US territory and reached category 5. It would make landfall on Wednesday night in Tampa Bay, Florida, which has not received a direct impact from a powerful meteor in more than a century. Thousands have been ordered to evacuate.
Voice of America
Milton regained strength on Tuesday and once again became a category 5 hurricane on its way to Florida, where it would reach land in Tampa Bay, which has not received a direct impact from a powerful meteor for more than a century.
It is expected to reach that part of USA Wednesday night, so the authorities have already ordered the evacuation of thousands of people.
Milton intensified rapidly on Monday, weakened slightly on Tuesday morning, but regained intensity hours later. In the afternoon it had maximum sustained winds of 270 kilometers per hour and was 775 kilometers southwest of Tampa, according to the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC).
“Milton could be one of the most destructive hurricanes in west-central Florida,” said the NHC, which forecast storm surges of 3 to 4.5 meters along a stretch of coast north and south of Tampa Bay. , which will probably flood low-lying areas. Rain forecasts of 127 to 254 millimeters or more threatened flash flooding inland.
The governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, He said the state will activate 8,000 members of the National Guard and is preparing truckloads of supplies and equipment near the area where the storm is expected to make landfall.
Florida’s densely populated west coast is still recovering from the Helene’s devastating stepa Category 4 hurricane that made landfall on Sept. 26, killed more than 200 people in six states and caused billions of dollars in damage less than two weeks ago.
Evacuations
Tampa Bay has a population of more than 3.3 million people and the county where Tampa is located ordered the evacuation of 1 million people in adjacent bay areas and all mobile and manufactured homes by Tuesday night.
Many Florida residents were fleeing the region as crews worked to prevent soggy furniture, appliances and other debris left behind by the state’s latest storm, Helene, from becoming lethal projectiles.
“Today is the only day to prepare,” said Craig Fugate, former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), who previously led the state’s emergency operations division. “This brings everything.”
Governor DeSantis said the state deployed more than 300 trucks that by Tuesday afternoon had removed 1,300 piles of debris left behind by Helene.
DeSantis said the state has helped evacuate more than 200 health care facilities in Milton’s path and there are 36 county-run shelters.
“A matter of life or death”
The president of the United States, Joe Biden, He postponed his trip to Germany and Angola on Tuesday from October 10 to 15 to oversee preparations for Milton and the response after the hurricane, the White House said.
Biden urged those who have been ordered to leave before Milton makes landfall in Florida to do so immediately, saying it is a matter of life and death.
Fed by the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, Milton became the third fastest-intensifying storm in the Atlantic Ocean, going from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in less than 24 hours.
Milton brushed the coast of Cuba toward the Gulf of Mexico, causing flooding in some fishing towns along the southwest coast of the Caribbean island.
According to the forecast, Milton would avoid other states hit by Helene.
The impact of the winds and expected storm surge could cause further devastation in areas still recovering from the damage caused by Helene 12 days ago and the chaos wreaked by Ian two years ago.
“This Milton thing is serious,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said at a news conference Monday. “If you want to take on Mother Nature, she will win 100% of the time.”
Voice of America
See information from the CDC on how to prepare for hurricanes:
https://www.cdc.gov/hurricanes/es/safety/como-prepararse-para-los-huracanes-y-otras-tormentas-tropicales.html